David Mooney elected Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors

Mooney is recognized as a distinguished American inventor whose technologies benefit society

(BOSTON) – Today, the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and the Harvard John A. Paulson School for Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have announced that David Mooney, Ph.D., has been elected a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).

Mooney, a Wyss Institute Core Faculty member and the Robert P. Pinkas Family Professor of Bioengineering at SEAS, is recognized by the NAI for having demonstrated “a highly prolific spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on the quality of life, economic development, and the welfare of society”.

To date, Mooney has authored over 350 scientific papers and is an inventor on more than 38 issued U.S. patents.

“I am honored to be elected to an Institution that celebrates American ingenuity and the translation of discoveries to practical use, and this is really a testimony to the brilliant students, fellows and co-workers with whom I’ve been able to work and invent over the years,” said Mooney.

I am honored to be elected to an Institution that celebrates American ingenuity and the translation of discoveries to practical use, and this is really a testimony to the brilliant students, fellows and co-workers with whom I’ve been able to work and invent over the years.

David J. Mooney

Translating out of the lab and into the clinic, an implantable cancer vaccine for treating melanoma developed by Mooney and his team is now undergoing a Phase I clinical trial in partnership with the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. The implant comprises drugs and patient specific components delivered within a biodegradable scaffold, and beyond treating melanoma, could also potentially be used to treat other cancers, infectious diseases, and auto-immune disorders.

“Dave Mooney is a pioneering innovator and inventor in bioengineering whose technologies are already beginning to have positive impact on clinical medicine, and so I am thrilled that he has received this honor that he so clearly deserves,” said Wyss Institute Founding Director and current NAI Fellow Donald Ingber, M.D., Ph.D., who is also the Judah Folkman Professor of Vascular Biology at Harvard Medical School and the Vascular Biology Program at Boston Children’s Hospital as well as Professor of Bioengineering at Harvard SEAS.

Mooney will be inducted on April 6, 2017, during the Fellows Induction Ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum in Boston. U.S. Commissioner for Patents Andrew Hirshfeld will provide the keynote address for the ceremony.

The NAI Fellows Program also includes Wyss Core Faculty members Jim Collins, Ph.D., David Edwards, Ph.D., Jennifer Lewis, Sc.D., and George Whitesides, Ph.D., in addition to Ingber and Mooney, and currently has 582 Fellows worldwide spanning 190 institutions. The NAI Fellows collectively have nearly 21,000 issued U.S. patents.

The Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University (http://wyss.harvard.edu) uses Nature’s design principles to develop bioinspired materials and devices that will transform medicine and create a more sustainable world. Wyss researchers are developing innovative new engineering solutions for healthcare, energy, architecture, robotics, and manufacturing that are translated into commercial products and therapies through collaborations with clinical investigators, corporate alliances, and formation of new startups. The Wyss Institute creates transformative technological breakthroughs by engaging in high risk research, and crosses disciplinary and institutional barriers, working as an alliance that includes Harvard’s Schools of Medicine, Engineering, Arts & Sciences and Design, and in partnership with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston Children’s Hospital, Dana–Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Boston University, Tufts University, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, University of Zurich and Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (http://seas.harvard.edu) serves as the connector and integrator of Harvard’s teaching and research efforts in engineering, applied sciences, and technology. Through collaboration with researchers from all parts of Harvard, other universities, and corporate and foundational partners, we bring discovery and innovation directly to bear on improving human life and society.